by Kate L. Mary
“What next?” Mira asked, drawing my attention from the sickening sight in front of me.
I exhaled as I thought it through, knowing what had to be done but not savoring it. “The tunnel.”
The men from the Huni and Mountari tribes looked at me, but they did not speak, and I could not tell what was going through their minds, if they agreed with me, or if they thought going so close to the city was reckless.
“We said we would not go into the city today,” Mira reminded me, but like the others, she did not act as if she was going to resist me.
“And we will not.” I stood so I could gather my things. “I just want to see if there are any tracks around it or other signs that Xandra made it this far.”
Both the Huni and Mountari men nodded, and Mira visibly relaxed.
“That makes sense,” she said.
After we had gathered our things, we moved around the wall of the city, not bothering to keep our distance the way Mira and I had before. With the Fortis gone, there was no one to spot us, and I wanted to take the fastest route possible.
The sun was already setting, and the mirrors I had spied the last time we were here were visible in the distance. They reflected the pink glow of dusk, making it seem as if the tower in the middle was glowing.
“What is it?” one of the Mountari men asked as we walked.
“We do not know,” Mira replied, her gaze fixed on the building despite the blinding glow.
I was too focused on my task to respond, especially on the footprints in the sand that seemed to tell me Xandra and Bowie had in fact made it here. We reached the boulders that shielded the tunnel from view, and I climbed over. The door was just as I remembered it, and around it there were footprints in the sand.
“They were here,” I said.
“How do you know?” a Huni man asked.
“If these tracks were older, the wind would have blown sand over them by now.”
“I think you are right,” Mira said. “Now what?”
“We cannot go in.” I looked regretfully toward the wall. “It is too dangerous. We will have to go back and discuss the next step with Ontari and Roan. We need a plan.”
It was the right decision, but as I stood by the rocks, staring at the walled city I hated so much, I could not help worrying that my hesitation would doom my friend. Whatever was happening inside the city, I knew for sure Xandra was suffering, and leaving her to be tortured did not sit well with me.
I turned my back on the city anyway and said, “Let us go.”
As much as I wanted to go through the tunnel and save her at this very moment, I could not afford to make an impulsive decision. I was a leader now, and I had a treaty. Whatever the Outliers chose to do, we would need to do it together.
25
Watch and wait. That was our plan. It was the right decision even if it made me feel powerless. We could not afford to run off without more information, and unless we went into the city, there was no way to get it. The Sovereign were sealed in tight, but we were convinced someone would eventually come out. They made and grew nearly everything inside the city, but even the Sovereign would need the meat the wilds provided.
We sent people out in shifts, each of our three villages taking turns. Three days passed, and we still had little information. It was wearing on me, and I was not alone. Gaia, like me, was having a difficult time focusing on anything else. When I got up in the middle of the night, my spinning mind making it impossible to sleep, it was not uncommon to find the older woman sitting alone in the main cave. Like she was waiting for the moment when Xandra would step through the opening.
That was where I found her on the third night after my visit to the wall, sitting by the fire and staring at the opening. She had looked ragged when we rescued her from the Fortis village, and she seemed to have aged another ten years since Xandra left. Or possibly it was just the light from the flames flickering across her face playing tricks on my eyes.
Gaia looked up when I entered, her eyes wild as if she had gotten caught doing something wrong. “You startled me,” she said, and then her gaze went back to the opening of the cave. “When you freed me, I swore I would never be away from her again.”
“We will get her back,” I said. “I promise.”
The other woman nodded, but did not look my way. “I know the two of you have become close, and I have tried to find comfort in knowing you would not leave a friend to die. But it is not easy. Not after everything I have seen the Sovereign do.”
“I understand.” I could only manage a whisper because she was not alone in her fears for Xandra’s safety.
Gaia glanced my way again, this time her gaze lingering on my face. “I believe you do.” She paused for a moment, hesitating before finally saying, “Xandra told me about your friend. The Fortis man. Is that why you can so easily accept who we are?”
“Perhaps,” I said and then exhaled as I lowered myself to the ground on the other side of the fire. “Or perhaps it is because I have learned that the Winta did not always know what was best. Right or wrong, it is not for me to judge you. I will leave that up to God.”
Gaia nodded, but said nothing before turning back to stare at the cave entrance.
I stayed at her side, knowing I would be unable to go back to sleep, and together we stared at the opening in silence. Her worry was focused on Xandra, but after our conversation, I found my own thoughts focused on Asa. Wondering where he was and if he was okay, as well as when I would see him again.
Fortunately, I did not have to live in suspense for long. Early the next morning, shortly after Gaia had given up her vigil and retired to Xandra’s alcove, someone burst through the cave entrance and stumbled inside. My heart jumped and I was on my feet in seconds, my first thoughts of Xandra as I spun to face the intruder.
Tris was standing in front of me, red in the face and out of breath, and I took a step toward her, my hand already on the knife at my waist. “What is it?”
“We have someone,” she gasped out. “A Fortis man.”
“A prisoner?” The news caused my heart to leap. This was what we had been waiting for.
“No.” Tris shook her head and swallowed before saying, “The man you know. The one who came here once before.”
Asa.
Thinking of him made my heart soar again, but in a different way this time. I had known he would find me eventually, and had it not been for Xandra going missing, the wait probably would have been agonizing. But I had been too focused on my missing friend and the upcoming battle to think about him much before. Now, though, all I wanted was to see with my own eyes that he was okay.
“Take me to him,” I demanded, already heading for the cave entrance.
Tris popped out of the cave in front of me, and I followed on her heels as she led me through the wilds, winding between blooming bushes and trees now bursting with green. We reached the same clearing I had found Asa in before, and even though I was thankful he was not bleeding this time, the sight of him kneeling in front of Emori was just as bad. His hands were bound behind his back and he was blindfolded, and Emori stood over him with a knife, holding it against his throat. The fierce expression on her face and the fire in her eyes told me she wanted nothing more than to cut him open and watch him bleed. Thankfully, Tris had been present to stop it from happening. She may have been the only thing that saved Asa.
“What is this?” I demanded when I stopped in front of Emori.
“This man was found in the woods,” she spit out.
“You know who this is.” I waved at him angrily. Exasperated that I had to tell her yet again that Asa was not a threat. “Why are you pretending you do not know him?”
“I know he is a member of the village we wiped out only a few days ago,” Emori sneered.
Behind the blindfold, Asa jerked at the venom in her words, and I almost reached out for him. The blade was pressed against his throat, threatening to slice him open if he made one false move.
“Get
that knife away from his throat and untie him,” I ordered. “Take the blindfold off. Now.”
Even Tris hesitated at the last command. “You cannot take him to the caves without the blindfold, Indra.”
“If he wanted to destroy us, he would have done it already. He could have warned his people we were coming, but he did not.” I looked from Tris to Emori. “If that is not a sign that we can trust him, what is? Now untie him.”
Emori’s gaze stayed focused on mine. She pulled the knife back, but she made no move to untie Asa. Tris, however, did as I requested and untied the ropes binding his wrists together, but the expression on her face said she was not happy about it.
When Asa’s arms were free, he yanked the blindfold off. Immediately, his gaze searched me out, and when his brown eyes met mine, it felt like we were standing in the middle of the wastelands with the hot sun beating down on us.
“Indra.” Asa climbed to his feet and moved toward me, stopping an arm’s length away.
I wanted him to take me in his arms almost more than I wanted to wipe the Sovereign out, but I was relieved he showed restraint. No matter my feelings for this man, I had no desire to anger Emori any more than I already had.
Asa looked as healthy as always, as big and as broad, although dirtier than ever before. His clothes were smeared with black residue that could have only come from the Lygan Cliffs, and his fingernails were caked with dirt. He looked weary, too, as if he had not slept much over the last few days.
But he was whole, and he was here.
Emotion clogged my throat, but I managed to say, “I am glad you are okay.”
“I ran just like you told me to,” he whispered. “With a small group of my people. We’ve been hiding in the cliffs.”
The thought of him living among those creatures filled me worry. The Fortis had very little experience hunting lygan. “You should be in the wilds. The cliffs are too dangerous, Asa. Here the trees will provide you with food and shelter, and keep you safe from the lygan.”
“That’s why I’m here.”
At his back, Emori snarled, but it was almost drowned out by the pounding of my heart. I knew what he was going to ask, and what I wanted to say to him. The only problem was, I had no idea what I should do.
Asa and I had a lot to talk about, but it would have to wait until we were alone—something I had been longing for since the last time I saw him. Whatever happened next, whatever decisions were made or declarations uttered, I had no desire to let it play out in front of Emori, so I waved toward the trees.
“Come with me,” I said as I began walking. “We will talk.”
Tris frowned as we passed her, and even though I understood her uncertainty, Asa had proven himself to me time and time again. She followed at a distance, but I looked back to discover Emori had stayed behind. We had spoken very little since the attack on the Fortis village, but I was aware that she and Linc had been spending time together. It was not a surprise, just as it would not be a surprise when they finally decided to challenge me.
Asa and I said nothing on our way back to the cave, and when we reached it, I ducked inside without hesitation. He followed behind wordlessly, as did Tris.
The main chamber was not empty when we stepped inside. More than a dozen people were gathered around the fire, eating the stew that had been cooking for the last several hours, but only a couple looked up, Linc and a few other men among them. Shock rippled through the room at the sight of Asa, and their expressions ranged from outrage to terror. Linc went for his knife, and Atreyu looked around as if he, too, were searching for a weapon.
Before either of them could do anything, I raised my hand and said, “He is a friend.”
“Friend?” The fire that flashed in Linc’s eyes was no less intense than the real one burning in the center of the room. “You cannot be serious, Indra. He is a Fortis.”
“And he saved me. More than once. I trust him more than I trust you right now, Linc. Remember that.”
Atreyu stood frozen, staring at me like I was a stranger. Despite how understanding he had been about all the changes to our tribe, there were accusations in his eyes. He was thinking of Bodhi, and possibly remembering the rumors that had followed my husband’s death.
“He is an honorable person,” I said, more calmly this time.
Atreyu’s gaze moved to Asa, but his expression did not change. “I do not understand what is happening with you, Indra.”
“It is something we will have to discuss later.” I turned away from him, heading toward the tunnel that would take us to the largest chamber. “Come, Asa.”
There, people were busy working, and to my relief no one seemed to care that Asa was with me. Gaia was among the group, as forlorn as before, as well as Mira. My friend’s blue eyes lit up when she saw Asa with me, but she said nothing. She was giving us space, I knew, and time to be together.
Asa followed me in silence just as he had the last time he was here, his heat wrapping around me more and more with each step. His nearness, his size, and his comfort engulfed me, dragging memories from the past. The times he had saved me from disaster, as well as the times he had comforted me when he had been unable to stop disaster from destroying my world. The night we spent together here in this very cave, and even the last time we spoke, in a hut that was no longer standing, and in a village that existed no more.
“Indra,” he began once we had reached my chamber. “I—”
I said nothing as I turned to face him, cutting his words off with a kiss.
Whatever he had planned to say was forgotten as he kissed me back, his hands already working to remove my clothes just as my own were working on his. I pushed myself up on the tips of my toes, trying to get closer to him, my fingers working on this pants while our lips moved together.
When we had both undressed, he lowered me to the ground, his body already on top of mine. I kissed him with a fever I had not known I could possess, remembering the fears that had tugged at my insides as we marched on his village. How scared I had been that he might not have run.
When he kissed his way down my neck, I took the opportunity to say, “I was scared you would not listen to me.”
“I was scared you’d get hurt during the battle.”
His mouth once again covered mine as he settled his body between my legs, and it was just as it had been before. His muscled warmth making me feel whole, his body fitting against mine in a way that made no sense. His heat comforting me and pushing my worries away.
We stayed that way, undressed and in each other’s arms. His body and the furs wrapped around us warmed the alcove, and I found myself wishing he could stay here with me. That he could be at my side every night when I lay down to sleep.
“My village is gone,” Asa said after a long silence.
“I am sorry for what you have lost, but I cannot be sorry for what I have done.”
“I know.” He kissed the top of my head as if to reassure me he was being sincere. “It isn’t over. You know that, right?”
“We know. We sent two people into the city and they have not returned. We have no way of knowing what is going on, but I fear we have underestimated the Sovereign.”
“Some of the Fortis survived,” Asa said.
I pushed myself up so I could look him in the eye. “You know this for sure?”
“We saw them,” he said. “The next day. When you attacked, they fled into the wastelands and the cliffs, and when they were sure you were gone, they went to the city.”
“The Sovereign allowed them to enter?” I asked even though I knew they had not hesitated. The Sovereign needed the muscle and the numbers, despite their electroprods and technology.
“They did. They’re inside the walls right now.”
“It is what I feared.” I sighed and settled back down, but I was not as relaxed as I had been. “It will make our attack much more difficult, but we cannot back down now. If we do, they will see us as weak and send the remaining Fortis out to destroy us. If
that happens, we could be the ones taken by surprise.”
“You’ll figure out a way to get inside.” Asa twisted onto his side so he was looking down at me. “That isn’t why I came here today, though.”
His dark eyes held mine, so soft and gentle they seemed to defy his status as a Fortis man. I knew what he was going to ask, and I knew how I would be forced to respond, but I stayed quiet and let him say it anyway.
“My people are suffering, Indra. We aren’t used to living outside the village, and we have nothing. No shelter. No food other than what we kill. We need help.”
I lifted my hand to touch his face, running my fingers down his scratchy chin. The stubble there was longer than usual, but no less abrasive.
“I am sorry for your suffering,” I whispered, my hand still on his cheek, “but there is nothing I can do. I have to make my people a priority. You know this.”
“You’ve unified the Outliers,” he said, his eyes searching mine. “What about my people? We left the Fortis because we believed in your fight more than our own. Shouldn’t we have a place in your alliance?”
I let my hand drop from his face. He had a point, but not everyone would agree. It would be a fight, and adding another battle to my life right now might not be a wise thing to do. Still, I was part of the reason he was suffering, and to do nothing was wrong.
“It is not up to me alone, and I am not sure if the other Heads will agree,” I told him. “They have not seen the same side of the Fortis I have, and even I have only seen you.”
“Take me to them,” Asa said. “Let me plead my case and see if we can work out a deal.”
“Is this why you came today?” It felt like the claws of a lygan had scratched across my insides when pain surged through me. His actions proved he had wanted to see me, but I still needed him to say the words.
“Yes,” he whispered, “and to see you. I wanted you to know I survived, and I wanted to make sure you were okay.”